Five Atlanta Falcons that should not play in Hall of Fame game

For the first time since the start of the 1994 season, the Atlanta Falcons will begin the pre-season in the Pro Football Hall of Fame game as they take on the Denver Broncos.

Football is less than a week away and this year the Atlanta Falcons will be front and center as the football crazed world will tune in to see what the Falcons have. This is an opportunity to provide a glimpse of what the Falcons have to showcase in regard to talent and depth.

Playing five pre-season games will give an opportunity to the handful of guys vying for the few slots that are not already occupied. Young guys will have an opportunity to show that even if they are just off the 53-man active roster, that the Falcons should retain them on the practice squad.

However, with there being five pre-season games this year, there are a handful of players that do not need to play in the Pro Football Hall of Fame game. These are a handful of guys that should treat this like every other pre-season and should not take the field at all until the second pre-season game of the year.

1. Matt Ryan

Under no circumstances should Matt Ryan take part in the Pro Football Hall of Fame game. After 11 years as the Falcons starting QB, what does Matt Ryan have to show anyone in a meaningless pre-season game.

Sure, pre-season games are about building your timing and there are some young pieces that could benefit from that, however, the Falcons will still have four other pre-season games and practices in order to build that timing and cohesiveness.

2. Devonta Freeman

Coming off an injury like Freeman is in 2019, he is another starter that should not play a snap in Canton on Thursday. The dirty secret surrounding Freeman is he seems to be one more concussion away from possibly having to retire and no one wants to that, especially in a pre-season game.

All signs coming out of Falcons training camp is Freeman looks as good as he ever has and is finally 100 percent healthy. No one wants to see that jeopardized in a fifth pre-season game.

The Falcons have lots of capable running backs sitting behind Freeman who are chomping at the bit for an opportunity to showcase that they belong on this Falcons roster and can provide meaningful depth should their number be called.

3. Alex Mack

Everyone knows that Mack is one of the top three centers in the NFL today. A big question that the Falcons have coming into the 2019 NFL season is the backup situation at center. There are a few guys that seem to be capable of providing that backup, but there is no better way to find out than to let those guys get some meaningful snaps in a pre-season game with the minutes that will be available.

Back in 2016 when Mack was injured in the NFC championship game, there was a clear drop off in not just talent but also confidence among the offense that has yet to be addressed. Wes Schweitzer is currently listed as the backup Center alongside Chandler Miller.

Miller is a guy to watch. The rookie out of Tulsa manhandled Ed Oliver during their showdowns in college and unlike Schweitzer is a true center.

4. Deion Jones

Another case of a pro-bowler coming off an injury plagues 2018 season. Like Freeman, there is no doubt that Jones will want to play in the game Thursday night versus the Broncos, but should he? As we have talked about a lot, depth is an issue. Has Duke Riley gotten any better? He should get the bulk of the snaps this week in order to truly decide whether it is time to cut bait and move on.

The Falcons this week also signed former first round pick Stephone Anthony. The first question many have of Anthony is how do you go from first round to unemployed in four seasons? There are a lot of reasons and none of them are simple. The short answer is getting traded to Miami would be detrimental for most guys given the dumpster fire that the franchise is.

Both Riley and Anthony can benefit from the snaps a lot more than Deion Jones can and holding him out one more week seems like the smart move.

5. Julio Jones

Another no brainer. Like Matt Ryan, Julio Jones has nothing to prove at this point in his career. He is on pace to become the greatest wide receiver to ever play the game and playing in a fifth pre-season game is meaningless for him and the Falcons.

Russell Gage and Devin Gray will benefit by the additional offensive snaps against the Broncos. Gage was an excellent special teams’ player as a rookie and will be looked at again in that role, however, he can be productive on offense and can make big catches when called upon as he did in college.

Gray is a practice squad player looking for additional opportunities to get better and prove he belongs on someone’s active roster in 2019.

Chances are all five of these players will see playing time when the Pro Football Hall of Fame game kicks off Thursday August 1st and even if that happens, none of them will play for more than a series.